Provincial government moves to end threats of SLAPP

New Tecumseth Free Press Online

Individuals and advocacy groups across Ontario who have been silenced in the past by threats of legal action known as ‘Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP)’, will be buoyed by new legislation that virtually strikes them out, retroactive to December 2014.

The Protection of Public Participation Act, which still requires Royal Assent, will give the courts a fast-track process to identify and dismiss startegic lawsuits based on the three test questions:
Is the lawsuit about a matter of public interest?
Does the case of the plaintiff have substantial merit?
Is the harm suffered, or likely to be suffered, by the plaintiff serious enough to justify stopping public expression?
“Depending on the answers to these questions, the case may be dismissed with minimal time or expense to the parties while also saving valuable court and public resources,” according to the press release issued this afternoon.

SLAPP’s have generally been launched by developers, corporations or others against citizens who spoke out against proposed projects in their communities.

“As a result of this threat, community groups and citizens were reluctant to comment on, or object to, proposed changes or threats to their community or environment for fear of the crushing cost and stress of lawsuits.”

The new Act will protect individuals from being liable for defamation when their concerns are reported to the public through a third party such as media, “while in no way limiting anyone’s right to take legal action in cases of libel or slander.”